Macron faces a critical week with two no-confidence motions and unions determined to continue the fight

The President of the French Government, Emmanuel Macron, faces one of its toughest weeks as of Monday. With his popularity at a minimum, the opposition will table two no-confidence motions against him tomorrow, Monday, and on Thursday unions called for the ninth day of strikes to try and get him to reverse his plans to pass pension reform. that it would, among other things, extend the retirement age from 62 to 64 years.

The general secretary of the second trade union in France, Philippe Martinez (CGT)accused President Emmanuel Macron this Sunday of not taking the warnings of the trade union organizations seriously. in an interview on the BFM channel.

The group of eight trade union organizations opposed to the pension reform requested a meeting with Macron by letter on May 9, in a message warning of “an explosive situation” if the government does not withdraw its plan.

But the French president did not receive the trade union leaders and the government approved the pension reform by decree last Thursday, in the absence of a majority in the National Assembly, for which he will face two censure motions tabled by several parliaments tomorrow, Monday. factions of the opposition

Since then, protests have taken place every day in French cities, in some cases with violent episodes such as the burning of rubbish containers or the destruction of street furniture.

The letter to the Elysee “was a warning,” but “it was not taken seriously by the president,” Martinez stressed. “When anger is sown…” he added.

However, the union leader completely distanced himself from the violent episodes, which have also not reached a serious level.

“We have always condemned violence outside demonstrations (…) The majority has developed calmly,” he stressed, before stressing that violent actions “have nothing to do with the trade union world”.

FRANCE PENSIONS
The Macron government faces two motions on Monday on the verge of an unprecedented crisis

Antonio Torres del Cerro, Paris, March 19 (EFE) of the truth as he faces two censure motions whose approval will depend on the votes of a divided conservative party.

The future of Macron’s nominee Prime Minister, Élisabeth Borne, will be in the hands of the 61 MPs from Los Republicanos (centre right), who could tip the vote, bearing in mind that Macron’s party and its allies have a relative have majority. .

Currently, at least 287 parliamentarians would be needed to overthrow the executive – half plus one -, out of a total of 573 seats (there are four vacant seats). The Conference of Presidents of the General Assembly will meet at 3:30 pm local time (1:30 pm GMT) and if the agenda is approved, the two motions will be put to a vote.

Marine Le Pen’s far right presents one, while the other comes from the small LIOT group (centrists and regionalists), who have the support of the entire left in the Nupes coalition.

While the LR leadership has issued instructions not to support the motions – its leader Éric Ciotti’s own parliamentary headquarters in Nice was vandalized tonight as a form of pressure – they had also asked their 61 MPs to support the unpopular reform to support. which raises the retirement age from 62 to 64 on March 16. In vain.

Half of the LR deputies announced that they would not support it in the chamber and Macron’s executive preferred not to risk a vote, so decided to activate constitutional article 49.3, which has already been used several times by different governments has been used and which makes it possible to adopt certain legislative proposals. law without a vote in the General Assembly.

According to press calculations, there are already four wayward Conservative deputies. It would be at least another 23 days before Borne presented his resignation and that of his ministers to Macron, who would probably be doomed to dissolve the Assembly and convene new legislative assemblies (the last being in June 2022).

Since the establishment of the French V Republic in 1958, only one motion of no confidence has been passed, in 1962.

MACRON’S POPULARITY LOWERS While Macron’s popularity has reached an all-time low since he assumed the presidency in 2017 – currently only 28% approve of him, at the level of the “yellow vest” crisis in late 2018/2019 – the social protests they begin to be more unpredictable and volatile.

Since the final adoption of the reform, on the 16th, they have intensified and often moved to the margins of left-wing parties and trade unions. Many have been called out on social networks.

This spontaneous and leaderless character evokes the method of the “yellow vests” revolt.

Last night, in the third consecutive night of spontaneous demonstrations, there were at least a hundred arrests across France, most of them in Paris.

Parallel to the unrest in the streets, the union strikes against the reform continue. Several refineries are blocked, such as the one in Le Havre, the largest in the country. Although there are no consolidated data yet, several filling stations in the Lyon and Marseille region are already experiencing a lack of fuel.

For its part, the consequences of the interruptions in waste collection in Paris are being felt. Despite the fact that the government has mandated the return of some workers for health reasons, thousands of tons of rubbish still accumulate on the sidewalks.

The Paris city council, which supports the strike and does not cooperate with the government, estimated that the amount of waste has stabilized at 10,000 tons. EFE, atc/fpa

At least 122 peopleaccording to estimates by the French Ministry of the Interior, ended arrested in Paris on Saturday during the day of protest against the pension reform imposed by the government of President Emmanuel Macron and presented on Thursday on the basis of Article 49.3 of the Constitution, which means that the approval of a rule without voting as long as no vote of no confidence is imposed.

The mobilizations took place across France this Saturday, with a special incident in Paris, where at 8 p.m. the police’s Motorized Brigade for the Repression of Violent Actions (BRAV-M) intervened and used tear gas against “rioters trying to throw put up barricades and set fire to rubbish bins,” the police said. “In the presence of a large number of thugs, the organizers have asked for the demonstration to be disbanded,” said the same source.

The day in Paris was marked by a controversial ban on demonstrations on the Place de la Concorde and the Champs-Élysées because of the danger to public order and safety.

There were also mobilizations with thousands in attendance in cities such as Marseille, Toulouse, Nantes or Gap, where there were also arrests.

The unions have declared a ninth day of strikes and demonstrations for next Thursday.

Motion of no confidence against Macron

On the other hand, the opposition continues to criticize the government, which they say even “does not respect the constitution” and “rules against the people”, in the words of Antoine Léaument, a deputy of La France Unsubmissive.

For him Monday a new appointment is scheduled debate the text of the reform with the Republicans in the position, as it will be necessary to see what they vote for the text and for the two motions of censure filed against the Macron government. The vote of Los Republicanos would be needed to carry out one of the two motions.

Economy Minister Bruno Le Maire already warned them that it is “a joke” that conservative deputies can vote alongside the far left.